Man charged in death of Glace Bay woman

There has been a major break in a Cape Breton murder case that implicates a suspect in another killing.

A 33-year-old Glace Bay man has been charged in the death of 21-year-old Brett Elizabeth MacKinnon, who disappeared from her Glace Bay apartment in June 2006.

Hunters discovered her remains near a hiking trail on the outskirts of Glace Bay on Nov. 21, 2008.

Today, police charged John Wayne Hynes with being an accessory after the fact in MacKinnon’s death.

“Thank God. Yes, it’s been a long time,” says Francis MacKinnon, the victim’s father. “Almost seven years now. It’s been really hard on the family.”

“Not knowing who did it or why, it’s been ripping everyone apart,” says MacKinnon’s aunt, Laurie Blanchard. “I am just glad it is coming to some kind of end.”

Police name 37-year-old Thomas Barrett of Glace Bay as MacKinnon’s killer in a court document.

Barrett is also the suspect named in the death of 21-year-old Laura Jessome, whose remains were found in a hockey bag, floating on the Mira River on May 25, 2012.

Barrett has yet to be charged in either case, but Glace Bay residents are expressing a sense of relief that police have made major breakthroughs in two high-profile murder cases.

“It took awhile, but I am glad it happened,” says one resident. “You don’t want people on the street who do these sorts of things.”

“I think it’s wonderful to finally see some justice being done to these two wonderful girls who were murdered,” says another.

Police have yet to explain why Barrett has been named a suspect in both murders, but has not been charged.

“Our investigators are still working on this full time and I suspect sometime in the near future there will be other charges laid against other individuals in this matter,” says Cape Breton Regional Police Chief Peter MacIsaac.

Barrett remains in custody while awaiting trial in relation to an unrelated attempted murder case.